Grief

Doom metal is a form of heavy metal that emerged as a recognized genre of metal in the mid-1980s. Doom metal is slow and heavy, with a pessimistic nature and often with intentions to evoke an atmosphere of darkness, despair and misery. It is strongly influenced by the early work of Black Sabbath. A number of early Black Sabbath tracks, such as "Black Sabbath" and "War Pigs," are often considered embryonic or prototypical doom metal songs. Many of the tracks on their third album Master of Reality (released in 1971) seem to have more in common with what today is seen as doom metal, with tracks such as "Sweet Leaf", "Into The Void", and "Children of the Grave" that featured Tony Iommi's guitar and Geezer Butler's bass tuned down to C# for heavier riffing and reduced string tension for his previously injured fingers. However Black Sabbath was not the only influence. Many doom metal bands started up only a few years after Black Sabbaths debut, with many hailing from countries where the popularity of Black Sabbath had not yet spread.

Doom metal is among the oldest forms of heavy metal, rooted in the music of early Black Sabbath, who are generally considered one of the first heavy metal bands. In the early 1970s both Black Sabbath and the American band Pentagram composed and performed this heavy/slow music which would later (in the '80s) begin to be known and referred to as doom metal by subsequent musicians and by fans of the music. From the late 1970s to mid 1980s, bands such as Trouble, Saint Vitus, Candlemass, Cathedral, Pentagram and Witchfinder General contributed much to the formation of doom metal as a distinct genre. The form of music played by these artists can be described as being rooted in both the music of Black Sabbath and, especially in the case of Witchfinder General, and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. The slowness of their music is often seen by some as a reaction to the increasing tempos of the contemporary thrash, power and speed metal... [continues]

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